Insurance and the interlock programme

Said plainly, first

We are not licensed to advise on insurance, we do not sell it, and we have no commercial relationship with anyone who does. Nothing here is guidance about your policy. The right person to speak to is a licensed broker who regularly places high-risk drivers. Ontario’s insurance sector is regulated by FSRA.

We publish no premium figures deliberately. Ranges circulating online are anecdotal, often stale, and never specific to you.

The device lease is not insurance

The most common mix-up. Your ignition interlock is leased from Smart Start Canada or ALCOLOCK Canada and is entirely separate from your auto policy. Paying the lease does not satisfy an insurance requirement, and holding insurance does not satisfy the interlock requirement. Two obligations, two invoices.

What a broker will want in front of them

Request a driver’s licence history or driver’s record from ServiceOntario before you call. It shows the suspension type, the dates, anything outstanding, and the conditions printed against your licence. A broker can do far more with that document than with a description from memory.

The borrowed-car question

People ask whether they can drive a relative’s insured car during the condition. Set insurance aside for a moment: an “I” condition means you may drive only a vehicle with an approved device fitted. Fines run $200 to $1,000 for a passenger vehicle plus impoundment, and Ontario can charge the owner who knowingly allowed it.

That is why a road test needs an interlock-equipped car rather than a borrowed one.

Our own vehicle

The car we bring to a road test is insured for that purpose as part of the booking. That covers the test itself and says nothing at all about your personal policy.